National Harbor, Md. (July 27, 2026) — Nearly one-quarter of teens reported using mobile food delivery services during school hours and almost half said they use them after school, according to a national survey of over 1,000 U.S. adolescents.
Among respondents who used such services, almost 60% reported ordering fast foods such as pizza and burgers, and over one-third ordered sodas or other sugar-sweetened beverages. The findings raise concerns about the ability to maintain safe learning environments and support healthy nutrition for students, according to researchers.
“Federal and state school nutrition policies are designed to support access to healthy foods and beverages in school cafeterias and vending machines, but technology has outpaced policy,” said lead study author Mika Matsuzaki, PhD, MS, MPH, assistant professor in the Human Nutrition group in the Department of International Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “Today, a smartphone instantly brings a food outlet many miles away right to the school gate, fundamentally changing how our children access foods and beverages at school. We can no longer look at school nutrition without looking at the smartphone in a student’s pocket.”
Matsuzaki will present the findings at NUTRITION 2026 , the flagship annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, held July 25–28 in National Harbor, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C.
Researchers conducted the survey online during the summer of 2025, garnering responses from 1,027 adolescents aged 13-17 years. In addition to the overall national trends, the results revealed some regional variation. Students living in the western United States were more likely to attend schools that allow mobile food delivery during school hours; however, teens in this region were also more likely to say they avoid using mobile food delivery due to the perceived high costs.
Nearly half of respondents said they support allowing mobile food delivery during school, although many—regardless of their support or opposition—expressed concerns about its implications for the learning environment and factors such as equity and bullying.
“Interestingly, students themselves are divided on whether this should be allowed. Even those who support it openly worry about campus safety and classroom distractions,” said Matsuzaki. “It’s rare to see teenagers raise flags about their own digital habits, which signals to us that they recognize these platforms are a double-edged sword.”
Researchers said schools can be an important venue to teach teens how to navigate digital food environments responsibly rather than impulsively. School administrators and policy makers could use the survey data as they consider campus safety and phone-use policies as well as potential guardrails to limit the influx of unhealthy food during school hours. It may also be possible to collaborate with food-delivery platforms to encourage users to make healthy choices. For parents and teens, researchers said the data could spur more conversations about nutrition and budgets.
“For many school administrators and parents, this study will be a wake-up call as they may not be aware of this relatively new phenomenon. We hope these findings will bring proactive conversations,” said Matsuzaki.
Researchers noted that self-reported surveys have inherent limitations and future studies could help to further confirm the findings.
Matsuzaki will present this research at 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. EDT on Monday, July 27, during the Food Choice, Markets, and Policy poster session in the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center ( abstract ; presentation details ).
Mika Matsuzaki was funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (K01HL165465) and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (P50MD017348). Brisa N. Sánchez and Emma V. Sanchez-Vaznaugh were supported by the National Instisute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (R01MD017687) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD111169). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Please note that abstracts presented at NUTRITION 2026 were evaluated and selected by a committee of experts but have not generally undergone the same peer review process required for publication in a scientific journal. As such, the findings presented should be considered preliminary until a peer-reviewed publication is available.
About NUTRITION 2026
NUTRITION 2026 is the flagship meeting of the American Society for Nutrition and the premier educational event for nutritional professionals around the globe. NUTRITION brings together lab scientists, practicing clinicians, population health researchers and community intervention investigators to identify solutions to today’s greatest nutrition challenges. The meeting also attracts rising leaders in the field, including undergraduate, graduate, and medical students. NUTRITION 2026 will be held July 25–28 in Washington, D.C. https://nutrition.org/meeting #Nutrition2026
About the American Society for Nutrition (ASN)
ASN is the preeminent professional organization for nutrition research scientists and clinicians around the world. Founded in 1928, the society brings together the top nutrition researchers, medical practitioners, policy makers, and industry leaders to advance knowledge and application of nutrition. ASN publishes four peer-reviewed journals and provides education and professional development opportunities to advance nutrition research, practice, and education. Since 2018, the American Society for Nutrition has presented NUTRITION, the leading global annual meeting for nutrition professionals. http://www.nutrition.org
Find more news briefs from NUTRITION 2026 at: https://www.eurekalert.org/newsroom/nutrition2026 .
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